Franck, Cesar : Psalm 150

Psalm 150 calls out to sing the praise of God on various instruments. Many composers have set this Text to music, including César Franck. Nevertheless, Franck, who worked as an organist in Paris for many years and wrote many orchestral works and oratorios, left only a few works on Biblical Texts in a large setting. Franck wrote his setting of Psalm 150 in 1883 for the inauguration of the organ in a home for the blind in Paris. The basically simple, homophonic choral writing was conceived with the young students in mind. Franck regularly articulated the Texture of the full orchestra with percussion and harp entries evocative of tone-painting. It is a sh Ort, effective work that has been making a strong impact at many choral concerts ever since its publication by Breitkopf & Härtel in 1896.